Eleven NFL owners are in L.A. today where they will
tour the Coliseum site and hold a press conference this
afternoon. In L.A., T.J. Simers reports that owners plan on
"officially proclaiming the Coliseum the NFL's choice of
site," and will announce a "design contest for a new-
looking" stadium at the Coliseum (L.A. TIMES, 4/20). New
Coliseum Partner Ed Roski has said he won't "stand in the
way of a league auction" of an expansion team in L.A.
Roski, who holds exclusive rights to any NFL deal at the
Coliseum, would relinquish those rights if he were
reimbursed for his expenses incurred while seeking a team.
Such expenses have been capped at $5M. Roski: "We've told
them (the NFL) all along that we're not going to stand in
the way of football in L.A. We would suggest a couple of
things, local ownerships and reimburse us" (AP, 4/20).
Roski, on a new owner taking over the Coliseum site, after
he has worked on the project for some time: "All of a
sudden, these people and relationships we've nurtured would
want to know who they're dealing with ... and whether the
agreement we worked out will be honored" (PRESS-TELEGRAM,
4/20). City Council member Mark Ridley-Thomas, on selecting
an owner: "I'd hope those problems would be resolved by
now." Ridley-Thomas, on the NFL: "You know they want to get
as much money as they can. The owners aren't here for fun
and games. They're here because there's money to be made.
You think they don't like collecting checks for $17 million?
[the split from the Browns' fee]" (PRESS ENTERPRISE, 4/20).
WORKING THE ROOM WITH L.A.'S BIZ EXECS: In Houston,
John Williams reports that the owners and other NFL
officials attended a cocktail party last night held by the
L.A. Business Advisers, a group of "top" business execs.
NFL Expansion Committee Chair and Panthers Owner Jerry
Richardson: "It's a very confusing situation here. ... When
we first met in Phoenix last month, Los Angeles was standing
still. But in the last month, we have gotten overwhelming
support from almost everyone in the community" (HOUSTON
CHRONICLE, 4/20). In L.A., T.J. Simers writes that by
spearheading an L.A. deal, Richardson is "putting his
reputation with his peers on the line" (L.A. TIMES, 4/20).
